How to Keep a Combined Gluten-Free and Gluten Kitchen

Keeping two kitchens — one normal, one gluten-free — is impractical for most families, so you have to get really good at separating foods that contain gluten from gluten-free foods. A person with celiac disease can get deathly ill (literally) if he or she ingests gluten, so follow these tips to prevent cross-contamination:

Gluten-free comes first. If you’re making two varieties of a meal, make the gluten-free one first. That way, the preparation surface, utensils, and pans stay uncontaminated.

Foil is your friend. Using lots of aluminum foil makes your life easier. Cover cookie sheets with it, use it to separate different foods, and warm foods on foil rather than setting them directly on an oven rack. Foil is a great way to ensure your gluten-free foods aren’t being contaminated.

Vacuum sealers save time. You can save time and money by making foods in larger quantities and then vacuum-sealing them so they stay fresh longer. Doing so is convenient, too, because you can vacuum seal individual servings and toss them in lunches or take them on the go.

Freeze it. Homemade foods don’t have preservatives, so they don’t last as long. Freeze them, and then use them when you need to.

Color-code leftovers. Because you’re likely to have some leftovers that are gluten-free and some that aren’t, consider using brightly colored stickers or labels to stick on the storage containers so you can easily tell which leftovers are gluten-free.